Several former Republican elected officials are pledging to campaign for the Democratic candidate running for Michigan’s 7th Congressional District.
Multiple former GOP state senators, staff, local government leaders and a judge endorsed Democrat Curtis Hertel Jr. for the mid-Michigan district centered around Lansing. The group argued Hertel would work across the political divide in Congress to deliver bipartisan results.
"I'll admit, I was a little bit hesitant when I was asked to speak here today, just because of the political capital it takes to the cross party lines," said Brett Gillespie, a current Republican member of the Grand Ledge City Council. "But I think national events that have been occurring kind of showed me that if there's a time to be politically brave."
Hertel is a former state senator who previously served as Gov. Gretchen Whitmer’s liaison to the Michigan Legislature. Whitmer endorsed him last month.
Joe Schwarz, a former Republican congressman from Battle Creek who served from 2005 to 2007, said Hertel would bring an important voice to the nation’s capital.
"The House ain't what it used to be," Schwarz said. "And we want to bring it back to what it used to be, and then bring it back to having strong, independent-thinking Democrats and Republicans in the House.”
Hertel's opponent is Tom Barrett, a former Republican state senator who unsuccessfully ran for the 7th Congressional District in 2022. He's centered his campaign on border security and public safety.
In a post published to X, formerly known as Twitter, Barrett accused Hertel of bringing "corporatist elites" out to campaign against him.
"Every single one of them is threatened by my steadfast opposition to corporate welfare, my outspoken rebuke of Whitmer’s crushing lockdowns and mandates, and they simply can’t stand the new working class coalition of today’s Republican party that I am proud to be a part of," Barrett wrote.
Like clockwork every election, the corporatist elites that get paraded out each year as the “Republicans for (fill in the blank Democrat)” are announcing their support for my opponent. Every single one of them is threatened by my steadfast opposition to corporate welfare, my…
— Tom Barrett (@tombarrettmi7) July 17, 2024
The seat is expected to be one of the most competitive U.S. House of Representatives races in the country. Congresswoman Elissa Slotkin is vacating the seat to run for U.S. Senate.
A poll commissioned by the group Inside Elections released Wednesday found Barrett leads against Hertel 48% to 41%. The same poll found former President Donald Trump leads President Joe Biden by eight points in a two-way race in the 7th district.
Hertel emphasized the importance of working across the aisle, arguing bipartisanship remains especially important in the wake of the assassination attempt on Trump.
“As we reflect on the horrible events of this weekend, we are reminded of the power and importance of unity, we are reminded that respectful disagreement amongst reasonable people should not be an issue. Rather, it is the lifeblood of our democracy,” he said.